"Hurrah, Captain Rover is crawling up!"
"Don't give up, Jackson, you can win out yet!" screamed Lew Flapp.
"Go it, Dick!" yelled Sam. "Go it, I say! The race is yours!"
Cheered by the last cry Dick increased his stroke and in a second more he was alongside of Jackson.
The latter made a side kick, intending to catch Dick in the stomach, but the eldest Rover was wise enough to keep out of his opponent's reach.
The kick made Jackson lose ground, and like a flash Dick passed him.
"Dick Rover is ahead!"
"See, Jackson is played out! He can hardly take another stroke!"
"Major Colby is crawling up! See, he is passing Jackson!"
"And here comes Tom Rover, too."